Authoritarian Cosmos: Complexity, Elective Affinities and the thermodynamics of the Self

The dissertation grew out of a deep frustration with existing theoretical accounts of authoritarianism. Seeing strong interconnections and consistent patterns in the literature, the author began to explore the possibility of developing a more ecological framework. Stubbornly carrying the - now so seemingly - quaint "torch of the enlightenment", the project set out with a brief conceptual archeology - a leisurely walk through the fascinating hall of fame in this long and well-established research tradition. Having identified four major conceptual themes that permeate the historical record (individual factors, structural factors, ideational factors and core values and beliefs), the dissertation then tried to advance a value-belief Esperanto capable of creating stronger connections among the factors. Using the wisdom of the past as well as the insights of a multi-conceptual cast - lenses as diverse as Weber's concept of elective affinities, social identity theory, developmental psychology, Symbolic Interactionist thought and research on values and beliefs - it outlined a "new", fairly unorthodox framework for the understanding of authoritarian self dynamics, observed affinities, associated threat and salience processes and/or the inner workings of the authoritarian reaction (the submissive and aggressive defensive mechanisms). To "show" that authoritarianism does not represent a "natural" outcome of group processes, a quasi-biological certitude and/or a value-added tax that humanity somehow had to pay for its own evolutionary tandrums but may be better conceived as an emergent property of particular interactional constellations (and thus seems far from an inevitable condition), the author explored a range of hypothetical scenarios. Recognizing the continued importance and implications of these phenomena in today's world, the dissertation ends with a passionate call for further theory integration. It especially maintains that continuing to keep compiling "new" empirical information seems less fruitful than trying to analyze the already existing stock of knowledge. Once one transcends the terminological and conceptual Wild West, it becomes fairly obvious that it is not the pieces that are missing but a better way to put them together.Department of Sociolog

Hate Crime in the News: The Media’s Role in Agenda Setting

Examining the extant literature on hate crimes shows that there has been an evolutionary process of Hate Crime legislation (HC). Similar to other social movements such as civil rights, the hate crime movement also had various waves which eventually lead to the passage of legislation. By and large, however, HC research has focused on victims and offenders of hate crimes as well as motivations of bias. Moreover, less research has been done on the media’s portrayal and coverage of HC. Since the media is a noted influencer in social issues (Culotta, 2002; Quisenberry, 2001), we sought to answer how the news media are reporting incidences of hate crimes – particularly LGBTQ+- and compare them with official crime statistics reported by law enforcement agencies. In order to answer these questions, our research utilized a qualitative content analysis using QSR NVivo 12.0 to identify potential themes and trends which may be overlooked in simple quantitative methods. Our dataset comes from the Hate Crime Index ("ProPublica," 2018), for the month of June 2018. Official FBI data is also utilized for comparison, spanning from 2012 to 2016. Our results suggest that the media reports HC within an overall internal Agenda Setting Orientation. During analysis, two main themes were identified that show the (i) media report both the failures and challenges of law enforcement in dealing with HC issue and, (ii) that media highlights various best practices some agencies engage in. Limitations and future research directions are discussed

In Search of the “Good Life”: The Appeal of the Tiny House Lifestyle in the USA

Over the past decade, tiny houses and the lifestyle they promote have become a world-wide phenomenon, with the trend especially impactful in the United States. Given their broad appeal and increasing prominence within popular culture, it is surprising how little research exists on them. To help to better understand what motivates people to adopt this lifestyle, this paper presents insights from an exploratory study in the United States and offers the first contours of a new conceptual framework. Situating the lifestyle within the larger economic and cultural forces of our times, it argues that going “tiny” is seen by tiny house enthusiasts as a practical roadmap to the Good Life: A simpler life characterized by more security, autonomy, relationships, and meaningful experiences. The paper ends with a brief discussion of broader implications and directions for future research